The McManus'
by archerdix0n
Summary: One of the few things a soldier doesn't think of when they return home is that they'd be eaten by people or get attacked by their friends - nor do they think of the apocalypse. [RickxOC] [DarylxOC]
1. Chapter 1

Tyler fidgeted with her backpack strap, biting her lip as she walked along the road, eyes darting along the edge of the forest, hand resting lightly on her Glock. She really hoped her sister was still alive, somewhere out there - she knew that if Dylan was alive and well, she'd take refuge in the woods and Tyler would've as well but she knew she couldn't do it alone. She knew the woods like the back of her hand but she had always been with her sister when they lived in the trees, she couldn't do it on her own.

Sighing, she unclipped the walkie talkie from her belt, figuring she'd try to contact her sister again when she snuck a glance over her shoulder and saw movement coming towards her. Cautiously, she stepped off the road and into the gravel, crouching down low when a car came up the road; she became even more weary when she saw that it was a cop car. She cursed under her breath when it slowed to a stop not too far from where she was, the door opening to reveal a man in his mid-thirties.

He wasn't too bad looking, if she was honest with herself - the sheriff's uniform looked amazing on him; she mentally shook away those thoughts, he probably had a wife or something, she shouldn't be thinking of shit like that in the middle of the apocalypse.

"Ma'am? Are you alright?" If the uniform did things to her, his southern drawl was something else and she already knew she was in deep shit. Cursing again, she slowly stood up, hands raised to show she meant no harm and that she was fine.

"I'm fine, not bitten or scratched, nor injured. Just - just trying to find my sister," She called back, shifting her weight on her feet - although she was attracted to him, she was still weary of him, good-looking or not, the end of the world did stupid shit to the survivors.

"My name's Rick Grimes, I'm trying to find my family. Would you like a ride? I'm heading to Atlanta," Suspicious guy or not, she eagerly nodded her head and started towards him - Dylan had told her that she was being stationed in Atlanta before the radio connection cut out.

"I'm Tyler McManus and I was actually heading to Atlanta on foot before you came up but boy, you just saved me about a day's worth of walking," She joked, sliding into the passenger seat; thankfully, he chuckled at her lame attempt, making her smile, grateful for another person's company after being alone for a while.

"Does your sister live in Atlanta?" Rick asked, glancing at her before darting his eyes back on the road.

"Nah, she got stationed at the CDC when the outbreak happened, been trying to contact her on the radio but nothing so far," She explained, frowning down at the walkie talkie still in her hand.

"Your sister's military?" She nodded, pulling out her dog tags and jiggled them.

"So am I. It's a family thing," He raised an eyebrow at that, glancing down at her dog tags before biting his lip. She looked away, avoiding direct contact with him in such close corners.

"What branch?" She looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"Marines. Both of us. Again, family thing. But our brother was in the Navy Seals," She took a deep breath - it still hurt to talk about her brother, even after ten years.

"Was?" She closed her eyes and breathed slowly, reminding herself that he doesn't know and is merely curious.

"Died in action; ten years ago. Body never recovered," She bit her lip as she felt a lump form in her throat, forcing herself to put a look of indifference on that boot camp taught her - it actually works a lot of the time whenever she felt her walls weakening.

"I'm so sorry," She waved off his sympathy, although she secretly melted that he actually cared.

"It was ten years ago, I had time to grieve," She tried to reason with him but she could tell he was still deeply upset about it, for reasons she couldn't phantom. Instead, she decided to change the topic.

"Tell me about your family," Mentally cringing, she wanted to slap herself - yes, let's talk about the guy you're attracted to and his family, bloody brilliant, Tyler. The bright ass smile that appeared on his face at her words weren't helping anything either.

"My wife, Lori, she's my high school sweetheart and my son, Carl, he's only ten..." He trailed off, eyes dimming a tad while sneaking a glance at her; she glared at him.

"Don't," She growled at him, making him swallow nervously. Clearing her throat, she fidgeted with a stray string from her utility uniform.

"They sound like good people, I'm sure you'll find them soon and safe, I can feel it," She smiled reassuringly at him before looking out the window, not really in the mood to chat anymore.

It was quiet for a while, the trees a green blur out her window, when he blurted out a question, "How old are you?" She snickered quietly at how red his face got.

"I'm 30, how old are you?" She teased, taking great pleasuring in his red face.

"Old," He grumbled, shifting in his seat uncomfortably under her stare, "Alright, alright! I'm 36," He grumbled more, making her chuckle.

"Aye, you're around my sister's age, she's 33 but I bet anything that she's older than you," Tyler teased, shifting in her seat.

"Tell me about her," He requested softly, watching as her face settled into a gentle smile and a faraway look appeared in her eyes.

"I can tell you right now that we look nothing alike, we had different mothers but that never bothered us, we were like two peas in a pod. Hell, we even got deployed together into the same platoon and they don't normally do that with siblings - something about clouded judgement and whatnot. Anyway, she's a total tomboy, she's not afraid to get down and dirty with the best of them - I'm not either but I swear to god, I'm pretty sure she was meant to be born a guy," Tyler giggled, remembering one summer when they came home covered head to toe in mud after taking the four-wheelers out for a spin after a heavy storm. Their parents were none too happy with the mud tracks in the house.

"She's every definition of what a Marine should be: fierce, loyal, deadly..."She trailed off, eyes looking off into the trees, "I know she's alive, out there," She nodded to the forest, "Surviving, like always. She said that the woods were her home, that she'd rather live in the forest then in a house. Would just up and leave for weeks at a time, used to worry my parents sick but after the fifth time, they just stopped trying," She laughed, Rick letting out a chuckle himself. It was silent again for a bit, Tyler closing her eyes as she enjoyed the ride, thinking back to her childhood in Ireland.

"So," Rick started, clearing his throat. Tyler grunted, letting him know that she was listening, "McManus, huh?" Tyler chuckled, nodding her head before squinting at him and smirked.

"Ye want ta know if 'm Irish or not, aye?" She teased him, letting her Irish brogue slip through after hiding it for years. She learned that most people don't take kindly to foreigners, even though she was born in the U.S.; she snorted at his amazed expression and an idea popped into her head, an evil sort of smirk stretching her lips.

"You really are handsome, you know that?" She muttered in Gaelic, snickering quietly when he narrowed his eyes are her. "You don't understand a word I'm saying, do you?" His frustrated huff told her everything and she chuckled, delighted, rolling her sleeves up absentmindedly. Rick snuck a glance down and raised an eyebrow at the multiple tattoos decorating her arm, one standing out more than the rest because of it's boldness.

"Veritas?" Rick asked, furrowing his eyebrows, "That means truth in Latin, right?" Tyler raised an eyebrow in return before letting out a pleased hum.

"That is correct. At least you know some Latin, I'll have to watch that when I'm around you," She winked at him before turning back to her window, missing the blush that spread across his face. Rick was cursing himself mentally, had to keep reminding himself that he's looking for his family - his main priority - but he had to admit that Tyler was attractive, more so than the average attractiveness. She had a sort of quality to her that just made you want to be friends with her and get to know her better; maybe it was her deep green eyes or bright-ass red hair that caught your attention but once you're past that, her personality is what draws people in, Rick assumed - especially now that she reveal that she can speak more than one language and is of Irish descent, Rick was finding it difficult to not bombard her with questions.

The sputtering of the car brought him out of his thoughts and he cursed, noticing that the gas needle was way past 'empty'. Sighing, he stopped and shut the car off, sitting there for a moment to think of a plan, rubbing his lips as he thought. Tyler rolled her eyes before leaning across him to pop the trunk and got out, grabbing her bag as she went; just as she expected, a gas can was sitting next to his duffel bag and a sheriff's bag of guns. She grabbed his duffel and the bag of guns, leaving him to carry the gas can, before walking over to his door and knocked on the glass, snickering when he jumped; leaning on the car, she rummaged through her pants pockets for her pack of smokes while she waited for him. She just lit a cigarette when he stepped out and went to the trunk, only to lean back around to see her holding his bags.

"I can carry my own bags, you know," He stated, remembering to grab the gas can before he approached her, staying clear of the smoke; she snorted and took a deep drag.

"Never said you couldn't," She raised an eyebrow at him before pushing off the car and started walking, cigarette hanging her lips as she shouldered the bag of guns over her pack strap. The street was a straight shot and after taking a glance at the sun, Tyler would've guessed it was a little before noon - they had plenty of time before night fell and she was hoping to get to the city by then. When she didn't hear him anymore, she looked behind her to see him still standing by the car, watching her go with a look of disbelieve.

She shook her head in exasperation and called out, "C'mon, Sheriff, we're losing daylight!" She blew smoke rings while she waited for him to catch up and tossed him his duffel, chuckling when he huffed in irritation. Continuing their walk, they talked about anything and everything they could think of - sometimes they agreed on something and laugh, sometimes they'll find a clash and argue over it until they went onto a different topic.

After, what she was assuming by the sun, an hour of walking, they came across a lone farm house. Tyler knew that no one would be here and if they did, they probably weren't willing to give away a bit of their gas - if they even had any - but Rick still wanted to see, so she indulged him and walked up the porch steps. She walked around to the windows while he tried knocking on the door and instantly wished she ignored her curiosity when she looked inside; a man sat on a couch with a woman - his wife, she assumed - laid on the floor by his feet, blood and gore covered them both, flies buzzing happily around them. From her angle, she could see the back of the man's head blown off, blood and brain matter splattered on the wall behind them, right next to a bloody "God Bless Us".

Crossing herself, she sent them a prayer while fingering her rosary that was hidden underneath her shirt, next to her dog tags. Letting out a shaky breath, she made her way back over to Rick, who looked at her shaken form with confusion; she merely just shook her head and snuck a glance back at the window over her shoulder, brushing past him to look behind the house to see if they had a working car or something. She raised an eyebrow at what she found - she was expecting a beat-up old truck, she certainly wasn't expecting to see a surprisingly healthy horse staring at her behind a wooden fence but she welcomed the surprise all the same.

Setting her things down, she approached the horse cautiously, with her hand out in front of her to show the horse that she meant it no harm. Tyler grinned when the horse bowed it's head and walked forward a bit to nudge her hand, inviting her to pet it. Being able to pet the horse, let alone being able to see one again, made her thoughts drift towards her childhood in Ireland. She smiled sadly, missing her home terribly and made her wonder if any of her family was still alive - if the infection hit their small village and if they actually had a safety shelter.

The crunching of dirt and grass brought her out of her thoughts, making her look over her shoulder at Rick, who was starring at the horse warily.

"There's a truck on the other side of the house - no keys, not enough gas," He stated, coming closer to her as he still stared at the horse. Tyler couldn't help but snicker at his reaction with the horse.

"Ya ever ridden a horse there, Sheriff?" She teased him, scratching underneath the horse's jaw. Rick just looked at her sheepishly before shrugging.

"It's been years," He simply answered, going back to looking at the horse with veiled wariness. Tyler smirked at him before snatching his hand and pulled him forward, making him stumble a bit as he got closer to the horse. She put his hand on the horses' neck and squeezed his wrist, silently telling him to stay there while she went to get a rope, so she could lead the horse to the stable and get saddled up.

"Well, boy-o here is our only transportation now, so make friends - unless you want to chance it with the dead-beat truck that won't make it half a mile," Raising an eyebrow in question, Tyler snickered when Rick reluctantly nodded; she patted his shoulder in mock companionship as she left.


	2. Chapter 2

"You sure you've ridden a horse before, Sheriff?" Tyler teased, watching the man twitch nervously next to her. His scowl told her enough to have her bent over laughing, one hand gripping the wooden fence while the other clutched her stomach.

"Oh man, aren't you in for a treat," She teased him, yet again, waggling a finger in his direction as she straightened and made her way towards the saddled up horse. Tyler mounted the stallion with ease, smirking over at Rick as she patted the horse's rear. Rick just rolled his eyes as he came forward and put his foot in the stir-up, hoisting himself up behind her with jerky movements; he gripped her shirt suddenly when the horse shuffled a bit under the weight.

Tyler chuckled, "Better hold on tight there, Sheriff, poor boy's been cooped up since the beginning - bet he's dying to release some energy," Sure enough, they took off at a gallop, causing Rick to yelp and Tyler into a laughing fit. They finally slowed to a steady walk after a few miles, Rick releasing his death grip on Tyler with an awkward throat clearing - Tyler just chuckled as she fumbled around in her pockets before pulling out a cigarette and her lighter.

"Ya never told me how you lost your family, ya know," Tyler mumbled around her cigarette, watching as a group of birds flew over their head; they were just outside of Atlanta now, she could see the beginning of the highway.

Rick cleared his throat, rubbing his mouth with the back of his hand to wipe away some sweat, "I was shot, a week or so before this happened, went into a coma. Just woke up a few days ago to...this," His voice cracked at the end as he waved his hand about dismissively. It was quiet for a while as Tyler processed this, silently thanking the Heavens that he survived the Apocalypse.

"You should add "Apocalypse Survivor" to that badge of yours, Sheriff," She teased, keeping her voice quiet as the atmosphere shifted to a quiet somber feel; Rick just snorted, an arm sneaking it's way around her waist again as the horse trotted around a dead body. As they trotted over an overhead bridge, both looked around at the utter dead feeling the abandoned cars gave, the way the cicadas drew out their call, birds chirping merrily - it seems like everything but nature itself was affected.

"Jesus..." Rick mumbled, gaze still on the side of the highway that was jammed with cars, dirty with months of dirt and being exposed to the elements. Tyler just stayed silent, sharp eyes taking everything in as she encouraged the stallion into a trot again - the way the air was just thick and stagnant didn't sit right with her. It reminded her of the day that her base camp got overrun - the dead tend to have a sort of feel to them that the air just gives off, a sort of warning, Tyler supposes. It made her uneasy to go into the city but if her sister was still at the CDC, she had to go get her.

"C'mon," Tyler grumbled, wiping her forearm across her forehead, her anxiety didn't make dealing with the typical Georgia heat any better. She longed to take her shirt off and just be in her sports bra but the arm around her waist was a constant reminder that she had a companion - not that Rick would've slipped her mind so easily, not since he was on her mind nonstop since she met him. It was unhealthy and she knew she had to stop - especially since they were looking for his family - but her brain just won't allow it; when she thought she succeeded, Rick would do something that automatically threw her mind into overdrive that left her feeling more frustrated then friendly.

"If anything, we can always siphon the gas from those cars if we ever come by here again," Tyler suggested, trying to make light of the current situation; Rick merely hummed in response, mind lost in his thoughts as his gaze looked beyond the damaged and broken Atlanta. Tyler sighed heavily, nudging the horse into a canter as they broke the edge of the city, the uneasiness blooming in her chest the further they went.

Tyler eyed a charred city bus warily, noticing it had bodies inside it and had irrational hope that they would stay stationary - she had walked past some cars that had some of the non-walkers in them - but fate had another idea as they past the bus, footsteps stomping down the bus steps to follow the giant piece of living meat. The horse whined and shuffled unsteadily, Tyler trying to comfort the poor animal before coasting him forward; Rick just stared at the walkers that ambled out of the bus - for some reason, one of them stared right at him as if it was trying to acknowledge him but Rick knew better, saw first-hand that they weren't people anymore, that they died and turned into savage animals. Still didn't make him feel better at the way that particular one was staring at him, sending chills down his spine as they cantered away from the stumbling corpses.

"I don't have a good feelin' about this," Rick murmured, leaning in toward Tyler's neck so that others didn't hear him; Tyler pointedly ignored how her body reacted to having him leaned in and breath on her, choosing to focus on the area around her.

"Glad I'm not the only one with the ominous feeling," She muttered back, chewing on her lip as she scanned the skyscrapers; Atlanta was one of the cities she wanted to visit when she come back from her tour and she should've been ecstatic to be here now - but now that the apocalypse happened, the city was a giant ghost town, no longer the lively and exciting city that caught her attention. Now, it belonged to the dead, both literally and metaphorically.

As they slowly made they're way further into the city, they came across more and more dead bodies - specially, dead soldiers; Tyler had to bite down on her lower lip to keep from crying as she witnessed two crows having a go on a rotting Army man. Rick must've seen what she saw because he squeezed her hip gently, a simple gesture to help her feel better and she appreciated it greatly, yet she still felt like she failed her fellow brothers - even if they were from different branches.

Being too deep in her thoughts, Tyler wasn't paying attention to her surroundings, until Rick started poking her in the side repeatedly and pointing up at an office building. Holding in a sigh, she tilted her head to see what got him all riled up and felt an uncomfortable amount of hope bloom in her chest as the reflection of a helicopter shown in the glass windows. Throwing all her rational thinking out the window, she nudged the horse into a gallop, hoping to catch up with the helicopter but a part of her knew that it was impossible - didn't stop her from trying, though; what did stop her, however, was the street full of walkers she just turned the corner to.

Horror filled her as thousands of decaying faces gazed up at her and she just sat there, paralyzed as they started towards her. Tyler felt like she was in a fog, she knew she was in danger, that she was putting Rick in danger, but she was still processing the thousands upon thousands of walkers that filled the whole street. It was when they started moving towards them made her instincts kick into gear, pulling back on the reins and turning tail, the horse sprinting away like it was itching to. Only to run straight into another herd of walkers coming in from the other streets - where they all suddenly came from, Tyler had no idea but she did know that if they didn't get out of there, neither of them were going to find their families.

Frantic, she stood up in the stir-ups to see if she can find a way out over the thousands of dead people when she noticed the tank a few feet from them. She wanted to smack herself in the face, she had noticed the tank when they first walked in but in her current state of panic, she wouldn't blame herself too bad - only if Rick got out alive, then she wouldn't. Just as she turned to tell him, the horse reared suddenly as the walkers tried to grab a hold of it, causing both Tyler and Rick to plummet to the ground as the horse tried to fight off the walkers to no avail, falling victim to the ravenous corpses.

"Rick!" Tyler shouted, crawling towards him as she dodged flailing hands, "Go to the tank, there's a latch underneath," She paused, lurching backwards as one of them grabbed a hold of her backpack. Slipping it off, she grabbed one of the straps and yanked it free before swinging it back and smacking the walker with it. "Go now!" She yelled at Rick, who was still laying there with his hand outstretched towards her. "Go!" Unsheathing her knife, she slashed at any walkers that were coming after her and gave Rick more time to crawl underneath. Seeing no choice but to go ahead of her, Rick army-crawled his way under the tank, shooting at a few walkers that were coming in from in front.

He found the latch quickly and slid in, shutting it firmly behind him, praying that Tyler got away and found a safe spot. Taking a breather, he sat back against the wall of the tank and let his head drop, fisting his hair tightly as he tried to figure out how to get out - which was nearly impossible at this point as the moans and groans of the corpses outside drifted through the tank. Rick wasn't even aware that the top latch was still open before a body was climbing down it; he had already drawn and loaded his gun when he recognized the pants that belonged to his companion.

Turning around after closing the hatch, Tyler raised an eyebrow at Rick's gun, "Not a good idea to shoot that thing off in here - pressurized air. Could blow out your eardrum," Rick grimaced and re-holstered his weapon. Seeing movement in the corner of her eye, Tyler turned and grimaced herself when she saw a dead soldier towards the back that was trying to pick itself up; sighing, she flipped open her knife and went to him, shoving the knife as gently but forcefully as she could into his temple, ending his life for good. She wiped the knife on her pants before closing it and slipping it back into her pocket, taking her rosary out at the same time, fingering the wooden beads with familiarity.

First, she crossed the soldier and slid his eyes closed before crossing herself, bringing her rosary to her lips, she began to pray for the fallen soldier in front of her and all the others that died on the front line at the beginning of all this, as the tears gathered behind her eyelids. Rick watched probably the last known military survivor pray for all her fallen comrades and felt great remorse for her, knowing that there's a possibility that everything she's come to know is all gone - no military, no government, no orders to follow - add on to the fact that her sister could be one of them, he wondered how she was still able to move forward.

As Tyler moved to stand up a bit, Rick finally noticed that she was covered in a lot of blood and rushed forward to check her for any injuries - mainly, if she had a bite - if she was bit, he didn't know what he would do...or how he would deal with it. Within their short time together, he had come to care for her immensely - he couldn't think of how he would deal with this new world without her anymore and that thought terrified him, if he was honest with himself. He was married for Christ's sakes - at least, he still hoped he was, if what he saw at his house was anything to go by. But even then, anything could've happened and while he was still holding hope that he would find his family, he found himself growing attached to this gruff Irish Marine.

"Rick, I'm okay, I'm not bit," Tyler said softly, resting her hand against his neck gently. A look from him made her sigh and refrain from rolling her eyes - though playfully. She was liking the attention he was giving her, even if it was from a life threatening bite or just friendly affection. "I'm not scratched either. Honestly, I'm fine," She cupped his face firmly, forcing him to stare into her eyes so he could see that she was serious. Rick held his breath as he tried to make out the emotions in her eyes before he hesitantly nodded, releasing his breath as he pulled her towards him in a tight hug.

"I can't lose you," Rick breathed, nose buried in her hair. It was true, Tyler could not leave him, whether she wanted to or not, she was to stick by his side - she was the only friend he could possibly have left, he didn't want to think about her leaving, it physically pained him, deep within his chest. Tyler just shushed him gently, murmuring that she wasn't going anywhere as she petted his hair, holding him tightly.

Rick calmed down slightly, being more relaxed and pleased by her ministrations than he should be, but he has yet to remove his face from her hair, taking in as much of her scent as possible to commit it to memory, "Any idea on how to get out of here?" He asked quietly, feeling the sweat beading along his nape, the tank soaking up the hot Georgia sun and with the combined body heat, it was practically a sauna in there. Tyler paused, her hand tangling in his hair as she thought about a possible exit, her eyebrows furrowing together while a frown marred her lips, eyes starring off in thought.

A loud static noise interrupted her thoughts, making her head snap around to the CB radio that was half a foot away from her head; she waited, thinking it was just her mind playing tricks on her like it usually did before but when the static came again, making Rick lift his head as well, she knew she wasn't imagining it. Then a voice came, clear as day, shocking both of them to the core.

"Hey you, dumbasses," There was a pause, a crackle of static, "Yeah, you guys in the tank. Cozy in there?" A slight hint of amusement of the man's voice carried through the radio, making Tyler laugh breathlessly. Maybe the events of today were finally driving her crazy.


	3. Chapter 3

Rick scrambled towards the CB radio, knocking his head on the roof of the tank as he stood up too fast, making his head spin and Tyler giggle hysterically. Rolling his eyes at her, he snatched the receiver off and pressed the call button, muttering into it frantically, "Hello? Hello?" There was a pause of static before it crackled again.

"There you are. You had me wondering. Where's the girl?" the voice responded with equal frantic. Tyler shimmied her way over and took the receiver from Rick, who just sat next to her in stunned silence.

"I'm right here," She spoke quickly before Rick took the receiver back.

"Where are you? Outside? Can you see us right now?" Question after question was fired off as Rick got more anxious; Tyler just rolled her eyes and slapped his arm.

"Yeah, I can see you. You're surrounded by walkers. That's the bad news," Tyler furrowed her eyebrows and tried to snatch the receiver from Rick but he slapped her hand away.

"There's good news?" A hopeful tilt was obvious in his voice and she had to restrain herself from slapping upside the head.

"No," The heavy sigh from Rick actually made Tyler slap him upside the head before wrestling the receiver from him.

"Yeah, I got that," She muttered sarcastically. Rick gave her a look before snatching the receiver out of her hands, making her tsk; he just ignored her.

"Listen, whoever you are, I don't mind telling you I'm a little concerned in here," Tyler swore her eyes were gonna roll out of her head one of these days because of him.

"Oh man. You should see it from over here. You'd be having a major freak-out," Both Rick and Tyler rubbed their faces at that - of course they knew it was bad out there, they just had to live it.

"You're not helping!" Tyler shouted into the receiver, knocking Rick's hand away after she was done.

"Got any advice for me?" He demanded, giving her a long look like a parent scolding their child; Tyler actually had to think for a minute on where he perfected that look before remembering that Rick was a parent.

"Yeah, I'd say make a run for it," Tyler considered it for a minute before shrugging - it was the most logical idea at the moment. Rick didn't think so.

"That's it? "Make a run for it"?" He asked, incredulous. Tyler just stayed quiet, unconsciously knowing that Rick was leader material and the obedient soldier side of her craved for it while her independent woman side was screaming at her to take charge. The only other leader she could think of is her sister and she wasn't even sure she was still alive if the state of the city was anything to go by.

"My way's not as dumb as it sounds. You've got eyes on the outside here. There's one geek still up on the tank but the others have climbed down and joined the feeding frenzy where the horse went down. With me so far?"

"So far," Rick nodded absentmindedly. Tyler figured she'd make use of herself and look around the tank for any spare weapons.

"Okay, the street on the other side of the tank is less crowded. If you move now while they're distracted, you stand a chance. Got ammo?" She snorted silently, knowing that Rick dropped his duffel bag of guns and was probably going to ask if he had time to grab it.

"In that duffel bag I dropped out there, and guns. Can I get to it?" She knew it, the guy was too predictable sometimes.

"Forget the bag, okay? It's not an option. What do you have on you?" Tyler snorted loudly, earning another look from Rick as she crawled over towards the fallen soldier. She knew he had a gun on him, she saw it before - she just hoped it still had some ammo left in it. Un-holstering the Beretta 92FS, she unclipped the magazine and felt her heart plummet out of her ass - it was fully loaded, never been shot. She eyed the soldier sadly - he never had a chance to use it, getting signed his death right from the get-go. Sighing heavily, she tucked the gun into the back of her pants before checking over his person one more time, eyeing the hand grenade that was strapped to his vest before snatching that.

Looking around the area one more time, she made her way back to Rick, who was sliding up to the CB radio with a shovel in hand. She gave him a look, to which he just shrugged at her.

"Whatcha get?" He asked her, his breathing labored as the temperature in the tank grew the longer they were in there. She debated if she should tell him about the grenade but thought better of it, knowing that the explosion would just draw more towards them - though, if she used the gun, it would draw more in anyways but she had a feeling she'd need the grenade for a later use.

"Got a Beretta, full clip, only one. You?" He just stared dejectedly down at the shovel and she snorted softly, grinning at him cheekily when he glared at her.

"Yeah, yeah. Tyler's got a Beretta, a full clip," She gave him an un-amused look before going over to her fallen backpack and untying her machete. She flashed him the large knife with an even larger grin; Rick just eyed her uncertainly as she took the gun from her waist and tossed it in her bag after checking that the safety was on.

"Make 'em count. Jump off the right side of the tank, keep going in that direction. There's an alley up the street, maybe 50 yards. Be there," Rick nodded before pausing, a thoughtful expression flitting across his face.

"Hey, what's your name?" Tyler stared at him, gobsmacked. Was he seriously asking that now?!

"Have you been listening? You're running out of time," She shook her head at him, still stunned that he would ask a stupid question like that and smack him sharply on the arm.

"Right," He snapped, glaring at her again as he dropped the receiver and moved around her to open the top latch. After a quick peek outside, he bent down to whisper to her.

"I'll go first and take out the one that's sitting out there, I'll give a signal when it's clear. One time use for the shovel," He was just trying to defend his poor excuse for a weapon as he eyed her machete but she let him go anyways, knowing he wouldn't agree to any other plan. She waited while he climbed out and did his thing, fingers tapping against the handle of her machete restlessly before Rick's hand popped out from above and waved two fingers.

Putting the handle between her teeth, she climbed up the small ladder and without waiting for Rick, took off with a slight jog, jumping off the tank followed by a tuck and roll when she landed. Looking behind her, she saw that Rick followed her example but failed to tuck and roll, leading to him landing awkwardly on his ankle. Cursing, she double-backed and pushed him forward, covering his limping self as they ran towards the alley, Tyler taking out any walkers that got too close.

Since Rick only had a six shooter, he deftly dodged any grabby hands and only shot when it was needy, running out of ammo pretty quickly, much to his disappointment. Even if he was out of ammo, he still pointed it at the figure standing in the open gate of the alley they were told to go to.

"Whoa! Not dead! Come on! Come on! Back here! Come on! Come on!" the figure - radio man - shouted, running back down the alley, stopping in front of a ladder that was attached to the side of a building. Tyler ran swiftly behind Rick, still taking out the walkers but there were too many for her to handle at once; still, she made sure Rick climb first as he was the one who was injured and defenseless.

"What are you doing?! Come on!" The radio man shouted down to her and she looked up to see them both staring down at her on a platform - she didn't even notice that Rick was no longer on the ladder. Slicing through a few more walker heads, she started for the ladder, machete between her teeth once more, and kept her feet well out of reach of the hands while she deftly climbed, taking two at a time. It honestly reminded Tyler of her boot camp days and she could feel herself falling in her long craving soldier mode.

"Come on, get up," The radio man panted, holding his hand out for her to take but she ignored it, lifting herself up onto the platform, staring at the two trying to catch their breath with mild amusement.

"You boys need to work out more," She stated, wiping her machete off on her pants; Rick just shook his head at her, finally catching his breath, while the radio man starred at her incredulously.

"Yeah, well, if I knew I would be running into the female G.I. Joe and Clint Eastwood here, I would've ran a few laps ahead of time," He snarked back, ripping his hat off his head to wipe away some sweat from his forehead. Jamming it back on, he breathed, "Nice moves out there, you both come in to clean up the town?" Tyler raised an eyebrow at his sass but she figured it was just the situation he put himself in - he seemed like the type to just do his own thing but follows others.

"It wasn't my intention," Rick defended, hand resting on his holster. Tyler took a peek below and saw that the bottom of the ladder was completely surrounded by walkers. She sighed mentally, knowing that the gun shots brought them in.

"Yeah, whatever. Yeehaw. You're still a dumbass," She noticed he didn't call her a dumbass - he was smart enough to not get on a woman's bad side, especially if they were trained in weapons like she was.

"Rick. Thanks," Rick stuck his hand out, the man briefly shaking it before looking at her hesitatingly; she just raised an eyebrow at him, making a clear show that she didn't want to shake his hand and he awkwardly dropped his hand back to his side.

"Tyler," She muttered finally, after giving him another look-over and smiled briefly. He returned her smile, again, awkwardly. 'Probably isn't used to being around girls,' She thought to herself.

"Glenn. You're welcome," The radio man - Glenn - looked up at the second ladder and saw that it was long and open. If one of them were to fall, there'd be nothing to catch them except the ground. "The bright side: it'll be the fall that kills us. I'm a glass-half-full kind of guy." Tyler snorted to herself, waiting for the other two to make their way up the ladder and safely on the roof before making a move to climb herself.

Like before, her body immediately fell into soldier mode, her feet swinging back and forth as she double-tapped the ladder poles, making it to the top in record time. The boys were still trying to catch their breath for a second time while she just stood there, staring at them. Now, both of them were looking at her with shocked expressions, Rick knowing that she was a Marine but he wasn't fully aware of what she could do until now.

"Seriously, what branch were you?" Glenn exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air with his frustration. She smirked at him as she slide off her backpack, switching her machete for the Beretta before hoisting it up onto her shoulders once more.

"The Corps," Tyler stated simply, shrugging nonchalantly at him as she moved forward, her steps silent on the gravel roof. She wasn't absolutely sure but she knew the boys were sharing a look behind her back, to which she just smirked. 'They haven't seen nothing yet,' She thought, chuckling silently as she jumped from the roof onto the lower one beneath her.

She knew that Glenn was in a group - he had to be, he looked to be fed and his clothes are hardly dirty. Not that she was doubting that he couldn't look after himself, oh no, she was pretty sure he could, he just lacked the confidence it took to make it on his own. They would've been stationed somewhere outside of Atlanta if he was here today, gathering supplies, she supposes; she knew that Rick wanted to find his family and Tyler her sister but if she was playing the scenario correctly in her head, maybe one or the other was with Glenn's group. It was a long shot by anything but it was the best she's got at the moment.

While Tyler knew her sister would've stuck it out there by herself, she might've joined a group to help protect others - it was their job description, after all - and if what Rick told her was anything to go by, his family might've joined the group as they fled from Atlanta.

Tyler just hoped she was right, afraid she'll get Rick's hopes up.


	4. Chapter 4

Tyler watched from behind Rick as Glenn radioed to whoever was in his group to take out the 'geeks' in the alleyway, raising an eyebrow at the two men that came out in riot gear, wielding baseball bats.

"Let's go!" Glenn motioned for them to follow him while the other two took out the walkers, leaving a clear path for the three of them. Tyler followed slowly, watching the two guys bash the walkers brains in before Rick pulled her past the doorway by the collar of her uniform. She fixed him with a glare before a streak of blonde obscured her vision and Rick's being pressed against a stack of boxes, a gun pointed at his face. The owner of the gun was a small woman with a fierce look on her face - she just wasn't expecting to have a gun pointed at her own face. Tyler kept her face blank as the woman turned her head a bit to stare at her, kept her arm steady as the muzzle of her Beretta brushed the edge of the woman's nose.

"I suggest you lower your gun, unless you want your head blown off," Tyler growled, barely moving her mouth as she glared at the blonde woman. Said woman just glared back at her and didn't move, keeping her stance against Rick with the gun under his nose. Tyler cocked her head and flicked the safety off her gun, the resounding click making everyone freeze and prompted one of the men from alleyway to sidle up to the blonde woman.

"C'mon Andrea, do what she says, lower the gun," The man whispered, a pleading tone underlying the request but the woman - Andrea - didn't back down - if anything, she just shoved her gun further into Rick's face.

"Why should I? We're dead because of him and his bitch," She snarled, her eyes heated in fury and despair. Tyler just shrugged and jabbed the muzzle of the Beretta against the woman's temple, taking note of the lady's body language at the action before darting her gaze towards Rick, making sure he was alright for the time being. Something on the woman's gun caught her eye, though, made Tyler snort with incredulous.

"Well, for one, the safety on your gun isn't even off," Tyler stated casually, acting like she wasn't holding a gun to someone's head. "Really? You're in a city full of walkers and you don't even know how to turn the safety off. Do you even know how to handle a gun?" She asked the woman, taunting her a bit with a condescending smile as she crowded Andrea's personal space.

"Tyler!" Rick snapped, glaring at her pointedly when she turned to look at him. She merely rolled her eyes and dropping her arm, flicking the safety back on the Beretta before tucking in the back of her fatigues, taking a step back from the over-emotional blonde. The other man - a Hispanic, now that Tyler can see him properly - also finally convinced the blonde to back off Rick, sparring Tyler a once-over glance and took in her uniform, a spark of interest in his eyes that she knew all too much of. He thought she was there to save them, that there was an actual refugee center and she came to rescue them; she snorted at the thought - the world was completely overrun with the dead and it took the government with them. She was a soldier that followed her instincts blindly, not used to not having orders and being on her own - it was one of the reasons why she's still with Rick, she could feel the leadership that practically flows off him. Plus, the fact that he was attractive and doing things to her body that she hadn't felt before was a bonus, no matter how frustrating it was.

She snorted, muttering, "Pathetic," as she stalked past the small group, her combat boots making dull thumps on the concrete. Tyler stopped when she stormed into an empty clothing store, the mannequins still stood and she eyed them warily; a muffled pounding noise brought her attention to the store's doors, narrowing her eyes when she saw the horde of walkers banging on the glass - one of them even had a brick, which made Tyler scratch her head in wonderment.

Hearing the others walk up behind her, she looked over her shoulder slightly and gave a brief nod to Rick as he stopped next to her.

"Didn't think they had the brain capacity to know how to handle objects like weapons," she muttered, nodding her head towards the doors. Rick just made a noncommittal grunt before patting her arm and heading towards the others. Tyler rolled her eyes and sighted, turning on her heels to stare at them from a distance - she still didn't trust them and the looks the Hispanic man were giving her was making her uncomfortable. Tyler really didn't want to crush whatever hope they had but she'd have to if they were going to hound her for answers that didn't exist.

"What the hell were you doing out there?" The Hispanic man asked, exhaustion and weariness coating his tone. Rick rubbed his neck awkwardly, sparring Tyler a glance before turning back to the group, hands resting on his hips - such a cop thing to do in Tyler's opinion.

"I saw a helicopter, was trying to follow it," he tried to explain and Tyler could already tell the strangers thought he was crazy.

"_We_ saw the helicopter, went to follow it, ran into a street-full of corpses," she explained further in choppy answers, voice monotonous so it'll tell them she had no interest in talking to any of them. She half listened as they tried to convince her and Rick what they saw wasn't real, that they were just dehydrated and seeing things - which Tyler knew was a load of bull; she didn't know about Rick but she sure as hell was dehydrated, she knew what it fucking felt like,

She watched on as one of them - a dark male, probably mid-thirty - try to find a radio station, to contact their group, she guessed. She had to shake her head at Rick who asked if he was trying to contact the refugee center - he should know from when they came in that the likelihood of a refugee center was slim to none. She didn't blame him for asking though, the guy was just trying to find his family.

Muffled gunshots interrupted her thoughts and she swore she heard the blonde woman mutter a name she thought she'd never hear again.

"Oh god, is that Dixon?"

Tyler wasted no time at all bolting from the room and towards the staircase that lead to the roof; if it was who she think it was, she'd have a friend from the past - something she really needed at the moment and although she liked Rick, he didn't know her at all and how to deal with her issues.

With the others hot on her tail, she burst through the metal door with a loud crash and looked around wildly until another gunshot brought her attention to the ledge, a wide smile stretching her lips as she took in the familiar figure. Bringing a hand to her mouth, Tyler whistled sharply, gaining his attention and probably damaged everyone else's eardrums. The goofy smile that lit up his face, along with the unforgettable raspy laugh as he jumped down from the ledge filled her with a welcoming warmth she hadn't felt in so long.

"Is that Lil Red I see standing before me?"

Tyler let out a brief bark of laughter before she strode forward and brought Merle into a tight hug, pleasantly surprised when he returned it - he had told her about his home like one night when they were both drunk out of their minds; it was their second month into deployment and Tyler was determined to know why he didn't want her touching him - or anyone, for that matter. She knows he was only there to stay out of jail and not out of the kindness of his heart to serve his country but that didn't bother her, she got a best friend out of it and she couldn't be more happy to know he survived.

Noticing the uncomfortable silence behind her, she patted Merle on the back before letting go, stepping back with a wide smile. Turning around, she was met with different expressions - most were confused curiosity but there were a couple that had disgust and distrust mixed in. Tyler merely rolled her eyes and went into her commanding stance subconsciously, arms folding neatly behind her.

"Dixon and I were in the same platoon," she stately flatly, gaze empty as she regarded them, giving Rick a small smile when her eyes landed on him, smiling a little more genuinely when he returned it. She turned her attention back to Merle and noticed his eyes were slightly glazed and unfocused; narrowing her eyes in suspicion, she gives him a once over before tugging his vest open aggressively, frantically searching his pockets and ignoring Merle's jeers. Feeling and hearing the slight crinkle of a plastic baggie, she glared at him furiously before whipping the bag out and over the side of the building, down into the walker infested streets.

"Hey! Whatcha do that for? S'was my stuff-" Merle snapped his mouth shut when he finally took in the furious look she was giving him - he felt like he was back in boot camp with the drill sergeants at her look.

She just shook her head at him, a look of disappointment shining through the layer of anger, making Merle feel ten times worse than when they were back in Iraq; she turned away from him and walked to the other side of the building, resting her forearms against the warm concrete, Merle watching her go with sad eyes.

Everyone just looked at each other, completely lost to what had just happened, and went their separate ways to do their own thing, a couple of them crowded around the man with the radio. Rick, however, went up to Merle and motioned him over the ledge where he was standing not too long ago.

"What can I do for you, Officer?" He asked, his body language and attitude subdued with Tyler's disappointed face playing over and over in his head.

Rick shrugged, leaning against the ledge with his arms crossed, "Tell me about yourself, about Tyler and her sister and what it was like to be in the military with them," Merle sighed and scrubbed his face roughly as he tried to compose his muddled thoughts.

"Not much to tell about myself, got a Lil brother, ma died early on - fell asleep with a cigarette in bed, the dumb bitch. Pa would be out on the bender a lot and we'd get into fights often - I was always gone at some point or another, in and out of juvie, ya know. Joined the military to do some good, thought I'd get my shit together and take my brother away, take him some place good and happy," Merle snorted, laughing bitterly. "Load of shit that was, it just screwed me up more when we got back from Iraq. Got honorable discharged since I took a landmine to the side and had to be sent home for 'recovery'.

"The only thing that made the whole thing worth it were those McManus sisters, I tell ya, when they let you in, your family forever in their eyes and whoever gets the honor of that should be grateful because they go to great lengths to protect their own. The last time I saw Tyler was when she was helping them load me into the humvee. I meant to find her when this all started but her house looked like it hadn't been touched in months; besides, I figured if she was still in service, they'd put her somewhere in Atlanta, be stationed at the CDC, ya know - I had lost hope when we came here today but you brought it back, you're the one who found her, didn't you?" Rick was lost for words, not expecting Merle to just open up like that but they always to not judge a book by its cover - he just nodded, answering Merle's question and gestured for him to continue.

Merle nodded, "I don't say this often but thanks - if there's one McManus sister still alive, the other ones bound to be, too. They're the kind of people you want with you when the world goes to shit, they'll keep you safe and sane and if there enough booze around, they'd get you black-out drunk," he chuckled, shaking his head fondly.

Rick went to tell him the thanks wasn't necessary but a voice behind them made birth men turn, smiling widely at the slight irritated look in Tyler's eyes, "You talkin' shit about me again, Dixon?" He scoffed as she smirked before turning to Rick, "They're having trouble contacting the group, maybe you should go over and think of a plan," her eyes sparkled mischievously, causing him to instantly be suspicious of her.

"And what are you going to do?" He asked, hands resting on his hips like a scolding mother; she just laughed at him and shook her finger at him.

"That's a surprise - besides, I'll have Merle with me, it'll be okay," she reassured him with a dazzling grin; Rick narrowed his eyes at her and pursed his lips for a moment before nodding reluctantly. She rewarded him with another bright smile and a chaste kiss on the cheek before grabbing Merle by the wrist and dragging him over the other side of the building and climbed down, out of sight.

Rick sighed heavily as he made his way over to the others, not liking that Tyler was not with him. He had gotten a brotherly vibe from Merle when he was talking about their military days and yet he can't help the small ball of jealousy that blossomed in his chest - even though he had no right, he was looking for his family, he shouldn't be jealous of anything. He growled, angry at himself for feeling these things. The world was shitty enough without the drama from the old world.

"So, what are we doin' down here?" Merle asked after he took out a walker; he looked over at Tyler to see her looting her own walker and chuckled. He shook his head at her cry of victory when she found a crushed pack of cigars.

"We're looking for ingredients to make an IED, give a distraction for the others to get out, meet up with them at camp," her tone of explanation was so matter-of-factly, Merle laughed loudly at her thinking.

"You always knew what to do in shit situations," he cuffed her on the shoulder with a playful shove and chuckled when she stuck her tongue out at him. They continued on until they came across a small kitchen with a gas stove; Merle set to work on getting the stove working while Tyler went to look for a janitor closet - if this place had any type of alcohol, they could make a molotov and throw it down the street a ways to make some noise.

"We could probably make a few molotovs, throw them onto any cars left around here, make a few explosions if we're lucky. Not much to be made around here," suggested Tyler, voice slightly muffled as she rifled through a closet. "I bet at least one of those desks or cabinets back at that office we passed through has a bottle."

"And if there ain't?"

Tyler sighed, her knees popping as she stood up, "Then I'll just go looking in one of the neighboring buildings,"

"You?" Merle interrupted, voice high with incredulous. "I thought the whole point of bringing me along was to do this shit together, if you're going then I'm goin' with ya,"

She glared at him, "If you would let me finish," he just smiled sheepishly at her. "We spilt up, pick a neighboring build and come back here with our findings. Overall, it'd take five-ten minutes tops. No side trips," Tyler gave him a look as she pointed her finger at him; Merle raised his hands in surrender as he went to one of the windows and smashed it open, jumping out onto the fire escape before Tyler could say anything more. She rolled her eyes at his antics as she strolled back into the office complex, rummaging through the drawers and came up with nothing. Huffing in annoyance, she climbed out a broken window and jumped on the neighboring roof, doing a tuck-and-roll as she landed.

Hearing the thunder rolling not too far off, she hurried over to the heavy metal door that sheathed the narrow staircase, echos from her boots clomping down the metal stairs resounded heavily on her ears - she really hoped there weren't any walkers in the stairwell, she felt embarrassed enough for making this much noise.

She opened the first door she came across, stopping to pull her machete from her pack and her gun from her waistband, bringing her arms up in a T formation with her gun on point and the machete downwards, she set off towards the unknown. Tyler didn't give her eyes any time to adjust, relying more on her instincts and senses as she glided through the dark passageway, hoping she'd wind up in a well windowed room.

As her luck would have it, a few snarls and moans sounded from her right with a couple coming in from her left - knowing she didn't really stand a chance going against more than a couple walkers in the dark, she backtracked until she found a secluded closet, feeling around inside to make sure there were no hidden surprises. Praying that they'd go away so she could get out of there, Tyler hoped that Merle found what they needed and went along with the plan without her, hoped that he didn't do anything stupid and left after the group, hoped they'd get to camp before night fell and payed no attention that she was missing. She had a feeling that Rick's family was with Merle's group, they just had to be, her gut feeling was always right and it hasn't failed her once so far.

But she knew Merle - hell, she knew Rick and she only knew him for a few hours - and they wouldn't really leave her behind. If they had by accident, they'd come and get her at first light. She just had to wait.

Yet, she wasn't really a patient person and even being a couple minutes in the tiny closet was already enough for her, her skin itchy to get out of there and bolt, aching to have the warm Georgia breeze on her skin again. Pressing her ear against the door, she couldn't make out any walkers beyond the beating of her heart pounding in her head; deciding to test her luck, she swung open the door, stopping it just in time to keep it from hitting the wall behind it - as far as she could tell, there weren't any walkers around her area, so she bolted before she could question it, taking the stairs two at a time and bursting through the rooftop door just in time to get belting in the face with rain.

Tyler laughed joyfully, feeling refreshed for the first time in months, her face turned upwards so that the rain washed over her, a pleased smile lighting up her face as she relished in the brief moment of freedom.


End file.
